Tokenisation – or the process of turning real-world assets into digital tokens – has moved from concept to reality in recent years. 

According to DBS Research, the tokenisation of real-world assets is at an inflection point towards exponential growth, with the market capitalisation of real-world asset tokens growing from virtually nothing five years ago to over US$25 billion as of August 2025. 

That figure is expected to rise further, with McKinsey estimating that the total tokenised market capitalisation could hit about US$2 trillion by the end of the decade. 

Trends driving the numbers include growing institutional adoption of digital assets, as well as increased regulatory clarity globally. 

Back home, the first Singapore dollar-backed stablecoin was also launched in September 2025, with reserves held with DBS Bank and Standard Chartered Bank. 

But what are the growth opportunities for the tokenisation of real-world assets and what does it mean for financial institutions like DBS?

In this “On the Go” Special episode of “Under the Radar”, Money Matters’ finance presenter Chua Tian Tian headed down to DBS’ Headquarters at Marina Bay Financial Centre to find out what’s next for the industry and how the bank is capitalising on the trend from David Hui, Chief Commercial Officer, DBS Digital Exchange.